


hey, you know this could be something.

by paleromantic



Category: Welcome to Hell - All Media Types
Genre: Alive AU, Coffeeshop AU, College AU, M/M, fake dating au, jonathan is my apathetic boy, like holy shit, they're super gay i love them, this is so fuckin fluffy
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-08-01
Updated: 2018-08-01
Packaged: 2019-06-20 01:20:40
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,954
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15522936
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/paleromantic/pseuds/paleromantic
Summary: Jonathan was quiet for a couple of seconds. “That’s easy, I’ll go with you.”Sock whined. “They’re all gonna laugh at- wait, what?” He paused. “You’re offering to go to a wedding with me?”Jonathan stared at him. “It’s what I said, isn’t it?”





	hey, you know this could be something.

**Author's Note:**

> This is my first w2h fic, I hope it's okay! Links to art will be posted in the notes below as soon as they're available <3 - Aaron.

"You brought me coffee? I didn't think you remembered my order."

Jonathan raised an eyebrow slightly as Sock put the cups down between them, but that was the extent of his reaction. Still, in the months that they had been friends, Sock had gotten used to the man’s lack of expression, or at least what he had thought was a lack of expression. He had gotten better at reading the expressions he did have too, so he knew that Jonathan was pleased that Sock had thought to get him coffee.

The library was quiet on the ground floor, since usually people went upstairs in search of working computers, and Wi-Fi that didn't make you want to walk into traffic. Jonathan had shrugged it off, saying that he had no need for technology to study, and Sock had agreed that it would be more private, anyway. He had to admit, a secluded table in the library basement was a much better place to study than the crowded higher floors, even if it was easier to get distracted by the man in front of him.

"I'll admit, it was challenging to think of the zero things you take in your coffee, but I managed." Sock rolled his eyes and pushed the cup of black coffee towards his friend, before taking a sip of his own.

"At least I don't poison mine. What’s in that, fifteen spoons of sugar?" He wrinkled his nose at Sock’s cup, and then sipped his own coffee, putting it down beside him and turning his attention back to his book.

"You should know, you make it perfectly. It's not my fault that I have taste, Jonathan." Sock grinned and then took out his books, putting them down with a soft thump on the desk. Finals were only a few weeks away, after all, and psychology had always been a heavy workload. Revision took a long time, and he needed the grades to keep his scholarship.

Jonathan, on the other hand, could pass exams with minimal effort. It bothered Sock to no end. Looking up, he could see the other man reading lazily, blue pen in one hand as his eyes scanned the page, occasionally making a short note before going back to his reading. Sock flicked his eyes down to his own textbook, which was a mess of notes and highlighted text, and littered with post it notes. Jonathan's, by comparison, was positively empty. How the hell did he pass his exams?

"Staring." Jonathan's voice was flat, but Sock could almost detect the slightest hint of amusement there. He might have been imagining it. Nevertheless, he diverted his gaze back to his own work, picking up his pen and getting a notebook out.

The next twenty minutes were almost silent, with just the pleasant white noise of paper being marked on, and the ticking of the clock on the wall nearby. Sock got the rest of his chapter on memory summarised by the time that Jonathan stood up, stretching out his back and rolling his neck around, each giving satisfying cracking noises before he sank back into his seat, picking up his phone instead of going back to his work. Sock took that as a sign that Jonathan was done studying for now, but Sock wasn't, so he just continued onto his next section on motivation and emotion. He got halfway through it before he could feel himself start to get distracted, and his leg started to bounce.

Apparently, Jonathan had noticed it before he had.

"Do you need to go for a walk?" Jonathan looking up from his phone at him. "You're twitching."

"Shut up." Sock huffed but that didn't stop him from closing his book and putting his things away. "I get restless, when I sit still for too long."

"Like an overgrown puppy." Jonathan noted.

"I can't help it, asshole. Are you ready to go, then?"

"You're assuming I want to go with you." Jonathan lowered his gaze to his phone again, only giving in after Sock had started at him for almost a full two minutes, leaning down to pick up his bag before standing up. "Fine, let's go."

"Great, you can walk me home." Sock grinned and turned on his heel, knowing that Jonathan would follow him out, only stopping when they were outside in the air. Jonathan stopped beside him, pulling out a cigarette pack and taking one out, lighting it and starting to walk again. Sock fell in line beside him, watching as Jonathan took a slow drag, before letting the smoke trickle out between his lips.

He had to admit, it was a little hot. He let his gaze linger on the man’s face, following the lines of his nose and jaw as he let the cigarette burn down a little in his hand. He had slight bags there, probably from his early shifts, and his eyes were hard as he watched people walking ahead of them. His mouth twitched at the corner, and then Sock went red as he met his eyes.

“Staring, again.”

Sock felt his face heat up and looked away, starting to walk again, shoving his hands in his pockets. It wasn’t like anything would come from it. Jonathan was probably straight anyways, and Sock had never seen him express interest in anyone, much less him.

***************************************************

“Sock!” Jojo’s complete disregard for the volume restrictions in Sock’s apartment block hadn’t changed in the four months he’d been living there, despite the many times he had admonished her for it. Still, it made sure that he heard her, and she usually didn’t bother him about things that didn’t matter.

“Get the fuck up dude, I need to talk to you!”

Sock groaned and tugged his hair, trying to force it to lay flat before he went to unlock the door, opening it to reveal the short woman on the other side. His cousin Jojo was even shorter than him, which was saying something, and she glared up at him as she fixed her bag strap.

“Took you long enough, asshole. Why didn’t you answer your phone?”

Sock blinked, and then glanced back to where he had left his phone, on his desk. “Shit, I forgot to charge it.”

“I forgot to charge it.” She rolled her eyes and then took out her own phone, dialling a number before holding the phone out to him. “Aunt Niamh wants to talk to you.”

Pressing the phone to his ear, Sock took a deep breath and went to sit on the bed, tucking his foot under him. Jojo closed the door behind her, making herself right at home at his desk, and picking up his fidget spinner, giving it a few experimental turns. The phone connected, and Sock picked at a stray fluff that was clinging to his jumper as he spoke.

“Hey, Auntie. Sorry, I forgot to charge my phone after studying last night.”

His cheeked threatened to redden, and he coughed to try and stop it. He had forgotten to charge it because Jonathan had come over with him, and they had continued their study ‘date’ to finish off some of their homework. It had been distracting, but no one else needed to know that.

“Max!” He winced, as his aunt’s loud voice rang in his ears. “It’s alright, kiddo, I’m just glad I got a hold of you! You never call or anything, I had to call Jo just to make sure you were alive!”

Something akin to guilt welled up in Sock’s stomach, but he ignored it, humming in response. “I’ve been pretty busy with my schoolwork, I’ll try to call you more often.”

“No need, kiddo, I know you’re busy.” He could hear her smiling.” You always were good in school. You don’t have any plans for the holidays though, right?”

He didn’t. He had been planning on just staying on campus for the holidays, catching up on sleep and television, but he supposed that that was a little sad. “No, Auntie. Why?”

“Your cousin Ellie is getting married, and she wants you to be there!”

Sock raised an eyebrow and looked over at Jojo. He would have appreciated a warning, weddings and family parties weren’t exactly his favourite place to be, but now there was no way that he’d get out of it. Jojo at least had the decency to mouth an apology at him, before grinning.

“Yeah, okay Auntie. I’ll be there. Do I need to organise my own flights or?”

They talked about the logistics of his visit home for a while, before his Aunt got that tone in his voice that made him uneasy. It was the tone she usually had when she decided that she wanted to pry into his personal life.

“You know, it is a plus one invitation…”

Sock huffed and then rubbed his face. “Yeah?”

“If there are any guys you’re interested in…” She sounded like she was trying pretty hard. “You know that we worry about you, since you told us…” Sock winced and then gritted his teeth. They all thought that he was hopeless, he knew that. It was embarrassing, and he yanked a thread from his jumper in annoyance.

“You don’t need to worry about me Auntie, I have a boyfriend.”

He didn’t know why he had said it, but now that he had, he couldn’t take it back. Jojo had sat up straight where she was, raised eyebrows and betrayal clear on her face. He swallowed and continued. “I’ll be bringing him as my plus one.”

His aunt seemed to be at a loss for words, and they quickly wrapped up the phone call before hanging up, and he locked the phone and passed it back to his cousin.

He was so fucked.

****************************************

Sock was distracted when he got to the coffee shop, so much so that he hardly noticed when he got to the front of the line, until he was jolted back into the present by a hand, clicking its fingers in his face. His train of thought was stopped in its tracks, and he felt the beginnings of a headache forming at his temples. That was the usual effect of talking to his family though, as he had the night before.

Jonathan looked as bored as he always did, and the rolled his eyes as Sock started to apologise. He was wearing his uniform, a grey shirt with a green apron, and Sock was pretty pissed off by how good it looked on him.

“Snap the fuck out of it, shrink. I made your order.”

Sock went red and nodded, making Jonathan roll his eyes, putting a cup down between them. At Sock’s confusion, he shook his head and tapped on his screen, printing a receipt and shoving it in his pocket pushing the coffee further towards him.

“Go sit down, drink your fucking coffee. You can pay before you leave.”

Knowing better than to argue, Sock just nodded, and brought the cup back to his seat, nursing it in his hands and taking sips from it, sitting down with his bag between his legs on the ground. His cousin was getting married to her boyfriend, and she had called him the night before to let him know where and when it was happening. Sock didn’t hate his family, but that didn’t mean that he had visited them very often since the start of college. Not to mention, since he had told them he was gay, they were talking to him less, not really being too shitty about it but not quite accepting it either. Maybe that was who he had told them that he’d be bringing a date in the first place, to show them that he really was gay, and let them get used to it. Only problem was, he didn’t have one, and he couldn’t show up without one now. His family would never let him live it down, and it would mean swallowing his pride and admitting that he had been insecure. Plus, they had been waiting for proof that he was gay, unwilling to believe that he could know, without experience. If he showed up alone, they’d just doubt him even more, and Sock would have to deal with it.

That wasn’t happening, not if he could help it.

He idly watched the people come in and out, lost in his own train of thought. He wasn’t very social, it would be extremely difficult to find a date that he actually got along with.

He could ask someone from his class, but that would entail making friends in his class. That would be a lot of effort, especially so late in the year. Possible, but unlikely. He could also use a dating app, but that would entail a lot of useless interaction, and shitty messages from guys that Sock didn’t really think he could stomach. He barely noticed the shop start to clear out as it neared the beginning of classes, until a familiar monotonous voice distracted him from his anxious planning.

“Dude, you’re burning a hole in the table. Quit staring into space.” Sock felt Jonathan flick the back of his neck as he came over, and he huffed and shifted his gaze up to him. Jonathan had spilled something on his apron, the stain starting to dry into the fabric, and he looked tired and sweaty from the heat behind the counter.

“Sorry, I just have a lot on my mind.” He put down his half-finished coffee, now mostly cold and sat back, fixing his hat. “Family shit.”

Jonathan said nothing, and looked uninterested, so Sock kept talking, sighing.

“My cousin is getting married, and I told everyone I had a date.”

“But you don’t.” Never one to beat around the bush, Jonathan sat down and raised an eyebrow.

“Yeah, I’m aware.” Sock rolled his eyes. “Astute observation. I need to find one, before the wedding, which is in two weeks. I don’t even know where to start, Jon.”

Jonathan was quiet for a couple of seconds. “That’s easy, I’ll go with you.”

Sock whined. “They’re all gonna laugh at- wait, what?” He paused. “You’re offering to go to a wedding with me?”

Jonathan stared at him. “It’s what I said, isn’t it?”

“Jonathan, the wedding is like, four days long. It’s in another country.” 

“Fine then, go alone. Be the laughing stock of your family.” Jonathan shrugged and made to get up, and Sock squeaked, grabbing his arm. This was probably a mistake, considering his crush on the man, but it was a much easier solution than actually going and looking for a date. He and Jonathan already knew each other pretty well too, and they wouldn’t have to fake getting along well.

“Wait, no, please go with me. I’ll owe you, big time.”

Jonathan raised an eyebrow and his mouth twitched upwards again. “Fine, okay. You have a date then. Pay for your damn coffee and go to class, Sock.”

Sock grinned and reached for his wallet. “Yeah, thanks Jonathan. See you later.”

**********************************

It was quite jarring to see Jonathan on his small dorm bed, stretched out and not wearing his work clothes. Usually, they just hung out on Jonathan’s break, or on campus, or one time at Jonathan’s apartment, but they had never went back to Sock’s own dorm room before. Thankfully, he had decided to clean it up the day beforehand, so it wasn’t as disgusting as it could have been. Jonathan hadn’t seemed to mind though, just looking around before sitting on the bed, passing Sock his coffee and kicking his shoes off.

Sock swallowed his nerves and took a seat at his desk, facing the man. “So, I figured we should… get to know each other? Since my family will think we’re an actual couple.”

Jonathan nodded and lifted the cup to his lips, drinking some. “That’s fair, I suppose.”

“What do couples even know about each other?” Sock frowned and then grabbed a notebook. “What kind of things will we need to know?”

Jonathan snorted and grabbed the notebook, tearing out a few pages and grabbing a pen. “You never had a boyfriend before?”

Sock shook his head, and if he didn’t know any better, he would have said Jonathan looked almost surprised.

“Huh, first boyfriend. I’m honoured.” Jonathan didn’t sound any different than usual, but he lifted his pen. “Tell me about your family, I guess?”

Sock hummed and then nodded. “Well, my parents are dead, so there’s that. I was raised by my aunt, the one who we’ll be staying with.”

Jonathan took a note, and then nodded. “Sure, okay. My parents live in Ohio, I don’t see them much so you wouldn’t have met them before either. Ideal, right?”

Sock snorted, stretching his legs out. “Yeah, it is. Saves us both a lot of effort.”

They continued just like that, shooting questions back and forth until they were reasonably confident that they could pretend to be a couple around Sock’s incredibly nosey family. Jonathan had moved to lie on his stomach, his legs crossed at the ankles behind him, with Sock facing backwards on his chair, and eventually they had gotten tired of the note taking, deciding instead to order food and watch Netflix. Sock’s laptop was small, but it did the job, and Jonathan put in his own Netflix account, making sure that Sock saw his details. Sock wasn’t sure how he felt about that, but he wasn’t about to turn down a free Netflix account.

“It’s almost like a date.” Sock giggled, dodging the pillow Jonathan threw at him and moving to sit beside him, feeling Jonathan’s body heat radiating off him.

“It is a date, loser.” Jonathan rolled his eyes and pulled Sock’s laptop over, browsing his Netflix home page. “God, you probably have shit taste in tv shows. I’ll pick, yeah?”

Sock raised an eyebrow. “No I don’t!”

“You haven’t watched Brooklyn Nine-Nine, dude. It’s one of the best shows out there.” Jonathan clicked it and tilted the laptop, letting Sock read the description. It did sound good, dammit.

Sock huffed. “Fine, fine. We’ll watch that then.”

Jonathan smirked and moved over to make room, letting Sock lean against him as they both watched the screen. Sock could smell his aftershave, and it was disturbingly easily to allow himself to enjoy their little fake relationship. Jonathan was pretty cuddly too, despite what he liked people to think about him. It did feel like a real date, and Sock thought that maybe the wedding wouldn’t be so bad if it all felt like this. He was pretty sure his crush wouldn’t make it any easier, though, even if he wasn’t complaining about an excuse to lean against the man and get closer to him.

***********************************

Sock’s clothes were too warm and smelled of plane travel when they finally arrived at his aunt’s house. He hadn’t wanted to go there first, he was hoping for a couple of hours at the hotel to nap, and to avoid seeing his family, but they had decided that it would be nice for them all to meet for an hour or two before they split up again. Something about family bonding, to make the wedding more close-knit.

Sock thought it was a lot of pressure to put on two hours.

Still, he ended up on his aunt’s doorstep, Jonathan’s hand gripping his own tightly. It was sweaty, but Sock didn’t really mind, and they needed to sell this. His aunt opened the door after a couple of seconds, and her warm smile caused the tightness in his chest to give way a little.

“Hey, Auntie Niamh.” He smiled and squeezed Jonathan’s hand, gripping his suitcase and pulling it up to stand by his feet. “I missed you.”

She pulled them inside quickly, enveloping Sock in a tight hug and asking him questions about college. The interrogation lasted a couple of minutes, before she finally seemed to notice the boy attached to Sock’s arm. Her face held a multitude of emotions then- initial shock, then confusion, then happiness, then excitement.

“And who’s this?” She raised an eyebrow and smiled brightly at Jonathan, who surprisingly smiled back softly, holding out a hand for a handshake. The wonders never ceased, it seemed.

“Jonathan Combs, ma’am, Sock’s boyfriend.” He let his accent slip through as he spoke, and Sock felt his face heat up slightly, leaning towards him to back up the point. It would be easier for them if they made it believable from the beginning, and even if Jonathan was warm and smelled good, that was just a bonus.

It was fine. Method acting, if anything.

“Sock never said anything about a boyfriend!” She swatted at his head gently before shaking Jonathan’s hand. “Keeping such a handsome boy to himself instead of introducing him to us.”

Jonathan laughed, and Sock was pleased to note that it didn’t seem fake, or out of place. He had never seen Jonathan look so… not apathetic. He felt himself smiling and tightened his grip on his boyfriend’s arm. “C’mon, Auntie, I was busy with college.”

Jojo, Sock’s cousin, appeared beside them, all bright smiles and fake surprise. Sock had texted her on their way there and warned her that he would be bringing Jonathan with him. She had been pissed, when Sock had told her about hiding a ‘boyfriend’ from her, but hopefully she wouldn’t look too deeply into it. Her and Sock did spend a lot of their time together on campus, and she had known about his crush on the man. He honestly should have expected for her to want to embarrass him as much as possible, then.

 “Yeah, busy loitering in the coffeeshop and staring at lover-boy.”

Sock went red, and Jonathan glanced at him, eyebrows raised slightly, before separating their hands to slide an arm around his shoulders, the soft fabric of his hoodie pressing into his neck. “I’m a pretty good barista, maybe he was just there for the coffee.”

Niamh laughed and shook her head, before ushering them towards the kitchen, where they could head the chatter of family members catching up. “Go for the coffee, stay for the barista, hm?”

Sock nodded and internalised a groan, partly at the question, and partly at the impracticality of walking while attached the way they were. Jonathan’s arm was causing his neck to hurt a little, but it would have been weird to duck out of the embrace, and Sock was appreciative of the body heat, even if it did hurt a little. This wedding was going to be the death of him one way or another, he could tell, but he hadn’t thought it was going to be due to neck pain. Still, he couldn’t really complain as he leaned into Jonathan’s embrace, walking with him to the kitchen to get pressed for information by the rest of his family.

Jonathan smirked and lowered his voice, rubbing Sock’s shoulder gently, and he was bad to his usual self. “Your aunt seems nice. Maybe I’ll ask her for baby pictures.”

Sock looked at him, and then sighed. “I hate you.”

“Adorable.” Sock felt the man squeeze his shoulder, before he was led towards where people had gathered, and fought down the wave of butterflies in his stomach.

Much to Sock’s delight (and discomfort), Jonathan took to his family like a fish to water, smiling easily and sweet talking his cousins, and aunts and uncles. Sock stood by his side, holding a cup of tea and following him as he introduced himself, only speaking to answer questions and back Jonathan up in conversation. It was oddly nice, and he had missed his aunt’s tea. His family seemed to like the man too, and there hadn’t been much of a reaction to the fact that Sock had a boyfriend, rather than a girlfriend. He hadn’t expected it to be so easy, but once he had gotten over the unease at that revelation, all he could feel was relief.

“Isn’t that right, Sock?”

He looked up, blinking. “Huh?”

Jonathan squeezed his hand tightly. “I was just telling your cousin how well you’re doing in class. Your latest essay got a 95, right?”

Sock felt himself blushing. He had told Jonathan about that in passing, he had no idea that the man had actually been listening to him. Much less that he’d remember it well enough to brag about it on his behalf.

Like a boyfriend would, duh. He’s trying to help you.

Sock bit his lip and nodded, chuckling. “Yeah, I worked really hard on it… Jonathan would know that though, I dragged him to the library to study with me for the entire week before I handed it in.”

His cousin tipped her head back in a laugh. “The things you do for puppy love, huh.”

Jonathan’s lips twitched upwards and he tugged Sock closer, dropping his arm to wrap around his waist and making Sock’s heart skip. “You could say that, yeah.”

***********************************

It was well into the night when people finally began to retreat to their hotels and rooms, and Sock had never been more relieved in his life. He was exhausted from the long day, not to mention that it had been extra stressful to keep Jojo from suspecting anything fishy about their relationship. The nap at his aunt’s house had helped some, but he had still been drained when Jonathan woke him to drive him back to the hotel.

He was less relieved when he saw the sleeping arrangements.

The hotel staff had put all the luggage in the correct rooms and laid them on the beds, their two bags on the double bed by the wall. He groaned slightly when he saw it, and he dropped Jonathan's hand, going to his bag and tugging it off the bed to unzip it.

"I can take the floor?" He kept his voice quiet, but from the way Jonathan's head tilted towards him, he knew the man was listening.

"Don't be ridiculous, we can share."

Sock felt his face heat up and he was lost for words, nodding and then opening his suitcase, getting his sleep clothes. He paused, not sure whether the other man would be okay with him changing in the same room. Jonathan put his duffel bag on ground by the bed and tugged his shirt off over his head, tossing it on top of the bag before walking to the bathroom. That solved that, then. Sock busied himself with turning his t-shirt the right way around, if only to stop himself from watching his ass as he left the room.

He got dressed quickly, folding his clothes and putting them back in the bag, before pulling his phone charger out, and plugging it in, sitting on the bed. It was soft and downy, and he stretched his legs out on it eagerly, making an appreciative noise before checking his phone. There was a text from Jojo, which he ignored, choosing instead to open one of the many games he had on it instead while he waited for Jonathan to return. He chanced a glance over at his bag, and reddened again, huffing. He was being ridiculous, this wasn't real. Jonathan was doing him a favour, and nothing more. He shook his head and locked his phone, putting it on the bedside locker before turning onto his side, pulling the duvet over him. It would be over in a couple of days, and then everything would go back to normal. They could just break up, and no one would know the difference. They could just go back to being friends, and Sock could go back to just being a customer in the coffee shop.

He felt the weight shift on the mattress, but didn't turn, just curling up a little and turning his face into the pillow. Jonathan grunted as he settled down, and sighed as he stretched out on the sheets, and Sock felt him tug at the duvet, wrapping it around himself. Figured, he was a duvet hog. Sock huffed and pulled the duvet lightly, as the air of the room threatened to make the space under the blanket colder. He felt, more than heard Jonathan snort softly.

“If you want to share the duvet, you’ll have to be closer than that. You’re on the edge of the mattress, it won’t work out.”

Sock huffed, but moved backwards, leaving some space between them still. “Yeah, okay. Goodnight, Jonathan.”

“Goodnight, shrink.”

Sock rolled his eyes before shutting them and allowing himself to fall asleep. There was another full day of family and wedding activities ahead of them, after all, he needed to be awake for them. He woke up a couple of hours later, bladder full enough to be a bother. He started to sit up, before freezing.

Jonathan’s arm was stopping him from getting up. Jonathan’s arm was wrapped around his waist. He felt his face heat up again, but he stayed still, not wanting to wake the man. They stayed like that for a while, until Sock really couldn’t stay still anymore and had to push at the man’s arm, sitting up.

Jonathan groaned and pulled him back down, before seeming to wake up properly and loosen his grip a little. “Dude, it’s still night time.”

“Jonathan, I need to pee.”

The man grunted his response and moved his arm, and Sock quickly went to relieve himself, before stepping back into the room. He waited by the door, and scratched his neck, before making his way back into the bed, easing himself into the warm blankets again. Immediately, he felt Jonathan move, and wrap his arm around him again.

“Jonathan?”

“Just go to sleep, Sock.” Jonathan grumbled against Sock’s arm, pulling him closer and holding him tight.

****************************

“I am not going to dance.” Jonathan’s voice was expressionless, and slightly rough from the whiskey he had been drinking. The party was well underway now, and everyone was either dancing, talking, or passed out in a random location, to be retrieved before bed. Sock and Jonathan had fallen into the second category, sitting by the wall so Sock could charge his phone and avoid being roped into talking to his family much. He was starting to get bored, though, and there was only so much entertainment that could be gotten from drinking. He could feel himself starting to get tipsy too, and he had drank far too much to be anything other than drunk by the end of the night.

“Come on, Jonathan, it’ll be fun!”

Jonathan was glaring at him over his glass, and a more sober Sock would have caved under the pressure. However, this was not a sober Sock. He reached over, pausing before grabbing the man’s wrist, and tugging him out of his seat. Surprisingly, Jonathan went with him, with minimal complaints. He even stopped Sock from falling over as they made their way to the wood panelling that made up the floor.

“I hate you so much.” There was resignation in Jonathan’s voice, and he groaned as a slower song started to play.

They quickly found a free space in the crowd, and Sock felt, more than saw, Jonathan put a hand on his waist, pulling him closer as they swayed in time to the music. His face heated up slightly and he raised his hand to rest on the man’s shoulder, other hand clasped firmly with Jonathan’s. Friends danced, he was just overreacting. The alcohol really had gone to his head though, and he felt himself stumble slightly, grip squeezing on Jonathan’s arm.

“Is this okay?” His voice slurred a little, and he huffed, trying again. Jonathan just rolled his eyes and turned them around, swaying.

“You dragged me out here, and now you ask if it’s okay?” Jonathan huffed, and then sighed when Sock’s face fell. “Yes, Sock. It’s fine.”

The music continued, and Sock found himself laughing giddily, clutching Jonathan tighter and moving to the beat, even as it changed to a more modern song. Jonathan, to his credit, kept up with him, letting Sock make a fool of himself, and making sure his knees didn’t buckle. Sock could feel the man’s hands, one gripping his own fingers, and one clenched in his shirt, warm against his hip. He leaned into it, happily allowing the man to hold him up. Jonathan was so solid, Sock had never had anyone to lean on like this. They looked like a couple to anyone watching, was what Sock figured as he lay his head against Jonathan’s chest, letting him hold him close. Jonathan seemed to have gotten used to it too, and his lips twitched upwards as Sock told him that, before he went back to his usual impassiveness, walking Sock back to where they had left their things. He didn’t drop Sock’s hand though, still gripping it tight and squeezing periodically, keeping Sock in the present as they reached their table again. Sock felt himself keel over, and he fell against Jonathan’s chest.

Their faces were close together then, and Sock, uninhibited, pushed himself up as he went in for a kiss, which Jonathan stopped in it’s tracks, pushing him back gently.

“You’re drunk.”

Sock pouted, and went to kiss him again, this time managing to brush his lips against the man’s jaw as Jonathan tried to keep him back.

“Stop.” Sock blinked, and let his hands fall to his sides, nodding dumbly. Jonathan nodded and started to walk again, this time keeping an arm around him. Sock protested, but he allowed himself to be pulled, grabbing his phone and giggling as it slipped through his fingers. Jonathan sighed and picked it up for him, shoving his own things in his pockets.

“I’m walking you back to the room now, okay?” Sock felt Jonathan’s grip tighten on his waist as they started to walk again, and he huffed, leaning into him and grumbling. It only took a couple of minutes for Jonathan to get them back to where their bed was, and Sock had immediately started to peel off his clothes, sick of the tightness of the suit he had been forced to wear. He loosened his tie easily, unbuttoning his shirt and pulling it off, dropping it to the floor. Jonathan, to his credit, averted his gaze and plugged in his phone beside the bed.

“For fuck sake, dude, warn a guy.” In the half-light, it almost looked like Jonathan had gone a little red as he turned to walk to the bathroom. Sock discarded that thought immediately, shaking his head and instead focusing on getting his trousers off, leaving them in a pile on the floor. Jonathan came back out soon after, in his sleepwear, and he helped Sock into his t-shirt, before getting into the bed. Sock did the same, watching Jonathan happily with his face pushed into the pillow.

“Go to fucking sleep, Sock.” Jonathan groaned. “You’re staring at me.”

“You’re handsome.” Sock blinked and covered his mouth. “I didn’t mean to say that.”

Jonathan had gone a little red again, and he pressed his lips together, his voice sounding more tired all of a sudden. “Just… stop looking at me like that.”

Sock huffed and nodded, pulling the duvet over himself and curling up, shivering a little, before whining and moving over to the other man, waiting until Jonathan sighed and held his arms out, letting Sock cuddle against him. The physical contact almost offset the sinking feeling in Sock’s stomach, but not quite.

“Goodnight, Jonathan.” Sock’s breathing caught on a yawn, and he pillowed his head on Jonathan’s chest again.

“Yeah, yeah. Goodnight.” Jonathan wasn’t about to sleep anytime soon, not with Sock like that, but Sock still took that as a cue to go to sleep, feeling Jonathan’s fingers scratch at the base of his skull, buried in his hair. He didn’t sleep for long, though, and it had only been a few hours when he woke, head pounding and shame sinking in his gut.

Memories of the night before came back to him piece by piece, as he sipped the coffee that Jonathan had brought to him from breakfast. Which he had slept through, naturally. He had avoided having to hear from his family in his delicate state, though, which he was grateful for. The curtains had remained closed, since any light made his eyes hurt, and while Jonathan had changed into normal clothes, Sock was still in his pyjamas. If boxers and a shirt could be considered pyjamas, although he hadn’t been worried about that when he had practically glued himself to his friend the night before.

He whined and rubbed his eyes, taking another drink from his cup. Jonathan must have made the coffee for him, since it was eerily similar to his order from the coffee shop. Perfectly made, as usual. That realisation filled him with both warmth and embarrassment, and he put the cup down with a clatter.  He had hardly been subtle last night, he wouldn’t have been surprised if Jonathan had left while he had been asleep. Jonathan had barely spoken to him since he had woken up as it was, so he must have been uncomfortable with it.

Well done Sock, you fucked up your only friendship.

He huffed and looked across at where Jonathan was sitting on the bed, laptop propped open on his lap. He had been answering emails last time Sock had looked, but now he seemed to be watching youtube videos, earphones plugged into the side of the laptop. He looked tired, but not any more pissed off than usual, so Sock decided to disturb the delicate silence between them.

“Jonathan?”

The man slowly took out his earphones and looked over at Sock, shutting his laptop. Sock swallowed and went red, pushing himself up to a sitting position.

“Uh, last night… I. I didn’t mean to make you uncomfortable.”

Jonathan’s expression was unreadable, and he raised an eyebrow, as if waiting for Sock to continue.

“I know you… you just did this to help me out, and I fucked it up by being…” Sock cleared his throat and bit his lip. “I’ll leave you alone after we get back, okay?”

“What are you talking about.” Jonathan was as quiet and impassive as usual, and oddly, it reassured Sock a little. He was still a solid presence, so maybe he hadn’t ruined things as much as he thought.

“I was…” He searched for the words, and Jonathan took a sip of his own coffee, before speaking up.

“Throwing yourself at me? I noticed.” Sock crossed his arms and went red, and Jonathan looked almost amused.

“Fuck off, it’s not funny! I shouldn’t have done that. You’re probably not even gay, dude, and I had no right to-“

Jonathan cut him off with a hand, and Sock blinked, falling silent as Jonathan frowned at him. “Hold on. You had no idea that I was gay?”

Sock widened his eyes. “You’re gay?”

“Why the fuck would I agree to go as your boyfriend if I wasn’t gay?”

“Because you’re a nice guy?” Sock scratched at his arm. “Because we’re friends! I didn’t know…”

Jonathan huffed a laugh and rolled his eyes, putting his laptop away and pulling his sleeves down, turning to face him. “Well I am. Gay, I mean.”

“Oh.” Sock cleared his throat. “I still shouldn’t have tried to kiss you though, it wasn’t fair on you.”

Jonathan shrugged. “You were drunk, Sock. You could barely stand, and nothing happened anyway.”

Sock nodded and ran a hand through his own hair. “I won’t do it again. No worries.”

Jonathan hummed, and the silence settled between them for a couple of seconds. Sock huffed and fiddled with his shirt, waiting for a response. He was still on edge, worried that he had upset Jonathan and that they wouldn’t be able to hang out anymore. There wasn’t even another good coffee place on campus, for fuck’s sake. He was pulled out of that thought with a jolt of shock, though, when Jonathan spoke.

“And… if I wanted you to?”

Sock stared at him. Jonathan was picking at his nails and raised an eyebrow slowly when their eyes met.

“What?”

“What if I said I wanted you to kiss me?”

Sock swallowed and then realised his mouth had gone dry. “You want me to kiss you?”

“Preferably not drunk, but yes.”

Sock blinked and started to get up, to move closer, but they were interrupted by Jojo knocking on the door. Jonathan looked at it, huffing and then going to get up, stopping when Sock reached out, stopping short of grabbing his wrist.

“Auntie Niamh wants you downstairs in ten minutes!”

With that, she was gone again, and Sock was left blushing brightly and staring at Jonathan, who was still in the process of getting up. Sock followed him to his feet, putting him closer to Jonathan, with just a couple of inches between them.

The air seemed to drain out of the room as they stood together, and Sock felt his face going red, his mind tripping over itself as he struggled to come to terms with the face that Jonathan wanted to kiss him. Thankfully, he was spared from having to speak by Jonathan pulling him forward, pressing their lips together in a chaste kiss before pushing a pair of jeans against his chest.

“Get dressed, Sock.”

He walked away, to the bathroom, and Sock started to pull the jeans on, dazed and giddy.

It was suddenly shaping up to be a very good vacation, and he was really looking forward to the rest of it.

**Author's Note:**

> Art for this fic!!! You should really check it out <3
> 
> [this one by marinakaefer](http://marinakaefer.tumblr.com/post/176515706225/my-pieces-for-the-w2h-big-bang-2018-w2hbigbang)
> 
> [this one by realyo-yo](http://realyo-yo.tumblr.com/) or [the same one on deviantart](https://www.deviantart.com/rileylan/art/It-s-what-I-said-isn-t-it-757444367?ga_submit_new=10%3A1533185212)


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